Being a regular busker, The Grasshopper is often asked - mostly by would-be fellows who find the whole thing a little daunting - about the rules in England pertaining to busking. You can guess the sort of thing: Where can I busk? Will I get arrested? Can I accept money? Should I pay the Council for a licence? (the answer to that last one, by the way, is a resounding NO!!1)
Busking in England is termed an ‘unregulated’ activity, which means that it is legal and not subject to licence on public land so long as two conditions are met:
It’s being done at a location or premises that is not built specifically (at least in part) for the purposes of providing entertainment;
The entertainment is incidental to another activity, such as shopping or sightseeing.
So, for example, a seafront qualifies admirably, despite what the local council (or, at least, some of its officious but unsavvy oiks) may claim.
Here’s an outtake (on account of its blustery-ness) from a recent set we did in just such a location…
Incidentally, the information given above was researched by The G. himself. The research included a thorough reading and cross-referencing of at least three Acts of Parliament2 together with a scouring of the supporting documentation, most notably the UK Home Office Revised Guidance issued under section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003 (April 2018). Since none of the Acts concerned even mention the word ‘busking’, one must resort to the bowels of the Guidance document to understand how the Acts apply. Consequently, the G. wonders whether this is a good counter-example of Tom Bingham’s first principle, given in his inestimable book ‘The Rule of Law’ that:
“The law must be accessible and so far as possible intelligible, clear and predictable.”
…well, almost a resounding NO!! Some councils, like Westminster for example, charge an ‘administration’ fee for processing a permit application. They shouldn’t be allowed to get away with it, but they are, alas.
Local Government Act 2003; Licencing Act 2003; Live Music Act 2012.